LAWCROSSING FEATURED EMPLOYER OF THE WEEK
1. 800. 973.1177
Sidley, Austin, Brown & Wood LLP [Adam Silver] Recently rated by American Law Journal as the nation’s top corporate firm, Sidley, Austin, Brown & Wood is a preeminent domestic firm with a strong international presence.
Before Al Capone and Harry Caray, Muddy
“Deal of the Year.” Such a distinction, though
Waters and the Playboy Mansion; Chicago
never to be taken for granted, is almost run-
was known as the home of the prestigious
of-the-mill at Sidley.
firm Sidley & Austin, which was founded in 1866. Today, the firm has maintained its
While the sophistication of cases is an impor-
reputation and grown to its position as one
tant determining factor in selecting a firm,
of the largest firms in the United States and
so is the office environment. Some firms,
across the globe. A 2001 merger with Brown
even those comparable in size to Sidley,
& Wood (founded in New York in 1914---a
lack diversity despite their overall numbers.
senior citizen in its own right) has created a
Thankfully, Sidley features a strong sense
legal empire comprised of around 1,500 at-
of diversity. The firm has a Committee on
torneys in offices in Chicago, New York, Hong
Racial & Ethnic Diversity which oversees
Kong, Brussels, Tokyo, Los Angeles, Shang-
the trends of the firm; Sidley has even taken
hai, London, Geneva, Beijing, Singapore, and
measures to aid other firms with diversity by
Washington, D.C.
creating the Chicago Committee on Minorities in Large Law Firms. Wiley A. Branton,
2001 should have been a blithesome year for
the former Dean of Howard Law School, was
Sidley, Austin Brown & Wood. Sadly, there
a partner at Sidley and the firm has set up a
was little time to celebrate the merger of
scholarship at Howard in his honor.
the two storied firms. Like many other New York establishments, Sidley had its main
Sidley encourages pro bono work and claims
Manhattan offices located in the World Trade
that its attorneys logged almost 50,000 hours
Center. A truly inspiring tale, the atrocities of
of pro bono service in 2003. Two Chicago
September 11th wiped out the building; but
partners, Linton Childs and David Schiffman,
remarkably, most Sidley employees emerged
were singled out for their achievements. Not
unscathed, and the branch recovered with
only is the firm committed to pro bono work,
astonishing alacrity.
but it practices it at the highest level and possesses an experienced track record in the
Sidley has a wide array of practices befit-
United States Supreme Court.
ting a firm of its size. The firm was recently commended for its IP work. However, its
With an established name and the oppor-
general corporate expertise is what Sidley
tunity to learn from and collaborate with
is primarily recognized for. Clients include
top-notch co-workers; Sidley, Austin, Brown
Chicago institution the Tribune Company,
& Wood offers exceptional possibilities to
which the law firm aided in its merger with
dedicated corporate attorneys all over the
the Times Mirror Company. Sidley attorneys
world.
also handled the offering of KPMG Consulting. The IPO went for over $2 billion, and the
Washington Business Forward called it the
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